Plans to turn the upper floors above Market Place Food Hall in Harrow town centre into 16 flats have been approved, despite concerns from the neighbouring Royal Oak pub.
Harrow Council granted prior approval for the development at 80-82 St Anns Road on Thursday, August 27. The first and second floors will be converted into homes, while the commercial use at ground-floor level will remain.
The scheme will see the first and second floors of the building converted from commercial use into homes, while the commercial premises at ground-floor level will remain.
The new homes will sit above Market Place Food Hall, which occupies the ground floor of the building.
What is planned?
The approved plans will create 16 privately rented flats across the two upper floors of the building.
Application documents show the homes will range from 37sqm to 70sqm. The scheme includes 12 smaller units and four two-bedroom flats.
Council planning officers found that all 16 homes would meet national minimum requirements for internal floor space, storage and ceiling height. The proposed homes will have a minimum floor-to-ceiling height of 2.7 metres.
The development is being dealt with under permitted development rules, which allow some commercial buildings to be converted into homes without going through the same process as a standard full planning application.
However, Harrow Council still had to consider a number of issues before giving prior approval, including transport, flooding, contamination, natural light and the potential impact of noise from nearby businesses.
The site sits between the pedestrianised St Anns Road and Greenhill Way, close to Harrow-on-the-Hill station.
Royal Oak raised concerns
One of the biggest issues raised during the application was noise from the neighbouring Royal Oak pub.
The pub, formerly known as the Rat and Parrot, sits immediately next to the building and is locally listed.
Greene King Brewing and Retailing Ltd, which owns and operates the Royal Oak, submitted a detailed objection to Harrow Council through planning consultants Walsingham Planning.
Its letter said: “Greene King objects very strongly to the proposal and consider that prior approval should be refused.”
The company argued that not enough consideration had initially been given to the impact the pub could have on people living in the new flats – or the potential impact future noise complaints could have on the pub itself.
According to the objection, the application building is around 3.5 metres from the Royal Oak’s external seating area at its closest point.
Greene King also highlighted the pub’s late-night licence and the fact that live and recorded music can be played inside and outside.
Its objection said the development included four homes with bedroom windows facing towards the pub’s outdoor seating area.
It warned that residents could experience “excessive noise and disturbance, particularly at night”.
The company also raised concerns that complaints from new residents could eventually lead to tighter restrictions being placed on the Royal Oak.
In its conclusion, the objection said: “Given how close the two uses are to one another in this case there is a fundamental land use conflict.”
Greene King went as far as warning that, in its view, “it is considered highly likely that this development will result in the closure of the pub in the longer term.”
Council considered noise impact
Despite those concerns, Harrow Council concluded that the development could go ahead with safeguards in place.
Planning documents acknowledge that some of the new homes will have rooms facing towards the Royal Oak.
They also confirm that the first-floor flats will sit directly above Market Place Food Hall.
A noise assessment commissioned by the applicant found that the building in its current form would not provide enough protection from noise without further work.
The report found that noise from the commercial premises below could potentially affect people living on the first floor.
However, it concluded that measures including improved flooring, specialist glazing and acoustically rated ventilation could bring noise levels down to an acceptable level.
Harrow Council’s Environmental Health team did not object to the proposal.
Council officers said: “There is a reasonable assumption that town centre locations will be subject to increased noise and activity levels from businesses and other amenities when compared to a more suburban location.”
They concluded that the noise impact would be acceptable provided the agreed measures are installed before anyone moves into the flats and are kept in place afterwards.
Flats will be car-free
The development will also be car-free.
The site has a Public Transport Accessibility Level rating of 6a, which the council described as an “excellent level of accessibility”.
Harrow-on-the-Hill station is around 250 metres away, while bus services are also just round the corner at Harrow Bus Station.
As part of a legal agreement, future residents will generally not be allowed to apply for residents’ or visitor parking permits. The restriction will not apply to residents who are registered disabled.
The developer must also make the parking restriction clear in marketing material and tenancy or ownership agreements.
Conditions before residents can move in
Several conditions have been attached to the approval.
A Construction Logistics Plan must be agreed with Harrow Council before work starts, covering issues including construction vehicles, deliveries, waste and access to the site.
Cycle and refuse storage must also be provided before the flats are occupied.
Most importantly, the noise protection measures set out in the acoustic report must be installed before residents move in and maintained for the lifetime of the development.
The development must be completed within three years of the prior approval being granted.
A previous application for the same 16-flat conversion was withdrawn, while separate permission for new and replacement windows and doors on the upper floors was granted in January 2025.
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